This was a lovely place. We had a large group (11 of us) we squeezed in upstairs in a private area. It is meant for 10 max but 1 extra person decided to crash our party! The more the merrier we say. Food was pretty good however there was a consensus that the beef carpaccio lacked flavor. I was also surprised to order the octopus but barely found any octopus in the dish, it was more of a shrimp dish which was not described in the menu at all. This is why I took 1 star off. All in all - we had a good time, the staff was friendly and patient with our large group. read more

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I called a number of restaurants to reserve a table. None answered. We were out for a walk and decided to give Al Mercante a try even though its focus on tourists made us a bit wary. But it was a few blocks from our AirBNB, it looked lovely, and we were hungry. To our surprise there was an available table. You can study restaurant reviews all you want, but sometimes you just have the good fortune to wander into a wonderful restaurant. And that was exactly our experiences at Al Mercante. We ate on the beautiful terrace which faces the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana art museum. The small piazza where Al Mercante is located was very quiet at night. The interior of Al Mercante is quite elegant. While the majority of the clientele were foreigners, there was small wedding party a couple of tables over. We had the very good fortune to be waited on by Angelo, a professional waiter who loves his job (23 years at Al Mercante!) and who ensured that we had a fine dining experience. Angelo speaks beautiful Spanish and we were able to have a more complete discussion than usual about the menu. I've managed to forget the details of the wonderful food we ate so I hope I. don't commit any serious omissions as I reconstruct our meal. We had an appetizer which I cannot recall. I think it was some sort of raw fish (crudo sounds better) with just a hint of citrus almost like an Italian version of ceviche. Our primo (shared) was wonderful: porcini mushrooms on roasted potatoes. What great taste from two simple ingredients. The secondo (also shared) was salmon coated in sliced almonds and a wonderful lemony sauce. Quite simply it was perfect. We had a terrific white wine that might have been a vermentino. Angelo didn't have biscotti with vino santo so he suggested sbrisolona -- another kind of dessert biscuit. -- that seemed to be homemade -- and a digestivo. In between all of this were wonderful amuse bouche. Here's what I'd like you to know: this was a wonderful, elegant meal served by a very professional waiter in beautiful surroundings. Al Mercante provided a delightful meal on our last evening in Milan. read more

Excellent food, very friendly and pleasant atmosphere. We were a large group and the service was excellent. I highly recommend it and will go back in my next trip to Milan. read more

The waiting staff is okay, can lack of attentiveness at times. Their bone marrow risotto is too good, a must try! Creamy rice with their special sauce. Pasta with mixed seafood is yum also. Price is reasonable. read more

Al Mercante - Bone marrow Risotto - Italian Near Me - Milan, Michigan

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Such a well run restaurant with such great service! We made a reservation a few days ahead via email and were seated at a wonderful table on the airy piazza outside the restaurant. We were greeted by one of the owners (several siblings) who helped us with the menu and assisted in our selecting a wonderful wine from the local region that was only 30€ (easily $100 or more in the states for the quality)-so good- and as wine people we know. While our waiter spoke no English, we were able to manage ok. Having learned from previous trips to Italy that it's easy to over order, we split three courses-creamy burratta with fresh flavorful tomatoes and arugula, a pasta course with ricotta and pesto and finally a baked snapper with fresh tomato sauce. All the food was beautifully prepared, flavorful and fresh tasting. On top of the fantastic food, one of the things making this place special are the staff-what a delight to have such well-trained and attentive staff watching over you. In fact they were literally standing at attention keeping an eye on things as were the owners while we sat in the piazza enjoying our food. WE finished up with an icy cold limoncello that was only 2.50 for a shot another bargain. At around 90€ including the amazing wine and fabulous service, our meal was a delight. Highly recommended read more

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'Mmm. Ohhhhh, yes! Oh, god, that is -so- good... I really don't want it to end.' ^--- Pretty much the words spoken by me upon consuming the massive plate of lardo here. Good thing we got it as a starter to share between two, because that stuff isn't light on the love handles. Not to be outdone by the foodgasmic fat, my osso bucco with risotto milanese (both drowned in a decadent wine sauce) was a superb recommendation. In fact, it was the primary reason we came to Ristorante Al Mercante: it fulfilled the role of a full-on proper Milanese cuisine meal, virtually from start to finish. In fact, I think the only thing that wasn't exceptionally local was the (absurdly massive) cheese plate. My dining companion explained that the cheeses came from all over the country, from north to south. If you want an explanation about regional cheeses, you'll have to ask her. As a proper cloth napkin pseudo-haute cuisine dinner destination, Al Mercante is definitely worth a visit, especially if you're playing tourist about Milano's city centre. read more

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Only a block away from Duomo area, this place is perfect after enjoying nice architecture of Piazza del Duomo ("Cathedral Square"). When we visited, it just rained, they didn't have patio seating available but I was told it is so enjoyable to sit at the patio. They have English menu available and staff spoke good English. Everyone was so friendly, they made our dining experience so enjoyable. They have good selection of wine, our table enjoyed both red and white wine from the area. We started with several appetizer, everything I ate was very good. If I have to pick my favorite, I think it will be octopus salad. For main dish, I enjoyed veal with mushrooms. Sauce used for this dish, I can't remember the name anymore, blended well with veal and mushrooms. We also enjoyed our desert. I had a bite from everyone and all of them were good including my tiramisu. We ended our dinner with Limoncello. Perfect way to finish Italian meal. Great location, good food, friendly service, I recommend this restaurant for nice dinner read more

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I was pretty happy with this choice. First, I enjoyed the outside courtyard seating. Second, my veal was really really good. Third, one of the guys bust out with some opera singing for his table (he even brought speakers and a mic). He was good - and it added to the entertainment for the evening. I would absolutely stop here again. read more

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I wish I could give minus stars. I was denied service at the door and was told that the entire restaurant was booked when there was literally no one there. The host didn't even get up from his table and meet us at the door. Instead he said so rudely in the midst of shoving bread in his mouth while sitting on a table towards the side. The food might have been mediocre and the service all right like the average reviews on yelp, but being turned away at the door for blatantly racist reasons are unacceptable for any restaurant striving to be the best. (I'm an asian american female, early twenties) read more

I love the location of this restaurant - in one of the oldest piazzas in the city so the views are amazing if you love architecture. They offer outdoor seating in warm weather which is always nice and the piazza is 'off the beaten path', creating a calmer 'Italian' experience. Living in Milan, we have had a chance to visit many restaurants throughout the city. This one has the ambiance, English speaking staff and menu's. If you are looking for a formal, Italian dining experience, this may be a good choice. The food is good; you will get a tasty meal here. There is a large wine list, and many staff members working in concert to serve. Dinner reservations are recommended for lunch or dinner during the busy summer months. I personally do not plan to return to this restaurant; I found the food to be 'OK', when compared to the final bill it should have been outstanding. However, a friend who was visiting returned for lunch one day after having dinner there, to try the pasta bolognese, his favorite Italian sauce and enjoyed the meal. The lunch bill was significantly better. During our dinner, we had a negative experience in regards to the bottle of wine ordered, Our original selection was not available (they put a small 'hash' mark next to the bottles that are out of stock, FYI) and the head waiter recommended another. When sampled, the wine smelled as if the wine had soured. The head waiter asked to taste the wine, deemed it 'fine' and instructed the waiter to pour the wine. Obviously the wine was completely unacceptable and the waiter should have offered another selection IMHO. Our guests enjoyed their meals. The restaurant offers many traditional Italian dishes, it is in a good location and the staff are professional. read more

Wonderful spot right off the duomo. I loved the salads, the veal ravioli, and the snapper with olive and tomato sauce. Another level of taste and service at the same prices as almost all the area restaurants. Fantastic service, explained many dishes to me in English, as well as a changing daily menu. read more

Al Mercante - Veal ravioli with black truffles. - Italian Near Me - Milan, Michigan

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Place is horrible, looks fancy, most of the time you need to book a table. Food has no taste. We order risotto, Florence steak and taste was very bad. Prices however is very high. Service is slow. I do not recommend this place unless you want to order only drinks and impress someone. read more

This place was recommended by our tour guide. It was okay. Not sure if I would be recommending it to people.... I had the riostto - flavor was mild and it was undercooked. Not al dente, but damned near crunchy. Bleh! We had a few other things there were fine, but certainly not memorable. Service was inattentive and awkward. Why are there only male servers in all of these places?? Over priced for the quality of the food. Skip this place. If all else fails, just eat gelato. :-) read more

Our waiter was great. He spoke English and was funny and very personable. He also sat us by the heater which I greatly appreciated. I had the onion soup and my husband had the pizza diavolo. Both were good. read more

Al Mercante - Pizza diavolo - Italian Near Me - Milan, Michigan

We came here for dinner our last night in Italy, and it was one of the best meals that we had during our time in Europe. We came on a Saturday night. We saw that the staff were setting up in the late afternoon, so we walked in and made a reservation, but it was likely unnecessary given that we returned around opening time (early by Italian standards). They have menus available in English, which was appreciated for us tourists. I ordered the "ravioli filled with mozzarella and pesto cream" for the starter. The pesto was fresh and creamy, and the ravioli were handmade. It was a delicious start to the meal. My main course was "beef filet with pink pepper sauce and stewed red onion"; I had ordered a similar dish earlier in the week in France, but this was much better. The meat was tender and cooked just right, and the pepper sauce paired perfectly. We looked at the options on the dessert cart - everything looked delicious, but we were too full to indulge. We ordered a litre of the house wine, which was tasty and paired well with our meals; we had no problem polishing off the carafe. My friend ordered the risotto with osso bucco, which he thoroughly enjoyed. I had ordered the same dish at a different restaurant the night before, and his looked much, much better than what I had eaten. I was honestly a bit jealous. I would absolutely come back here next time I'm in Milan. This was a great find located in the heart of the city centre. read more

The food was good, not great (especially for price). Waiter didn't listen well--brought my husband wrong kind of beer. Vegetable soup was good although beans were undercooked. Beef tartare good. Squash ravioli were good-could have been a bit more tender. read more

One of the most enjoyable meals in Milan. Found this place via coworkers who live here. Fabulous food and super friendly staff :)

Very slow service. They seem to favor the locals and are disinterested in you if you are a tourist. We were the first in the restaurant first order. The restaurant fills up. We were the last to get our order. The food arrived lukewarm and it was just OK. Definitely better places in Milano than this. read more

Near the Duomo area. Didn't have a reservation (which was needed at other well rated restaurants). Had ravioli filled with smoked tuna and swordfish; outstanding. Carafes of house wine were a good value, Reasonably priced. A very nice place with both indoor and outdoor dining. read more

Food was awful. I asked for a medium steak, but half of the steak was just rare! Also the pasta was almost rare as well! So if you prefer rare food and are willing to pay a considerable high price, it would be a good place to have a try. I would give one star for their service and one star for their location. read more

Excellent food and great service. I will make sure to come here next time I'm in Milan.